Legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and family on Wednesday exercised their right to vote in the ongoing Assembly Elections in Maharashtra. The former cricketer also urged the public to come out and vote. “I have been an icon of the Election Commission of India for quite some time now. The message I am giving is to vote. It is our responsibility. I urge everyone to come out and vote," Sachin said while speaking to ANI.
Voting for the single-phase Maharashtra assembly elections began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm. Polling is taking place across 288 assembly constituencies. A total of 4,136 candidates are contesting the elections, including 2,086 independents. The Mahayuti alliance, comprising BJP, Shiv Sena (led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde), and NCP (under Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar) will battle it out against the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition, which includes Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (led by Sharad Pawar). The election sees a significant increase in the number of candidates compared to the 2019 state assembly elections, with a total of 4,136 candidates vying for 288 seats—an increase of 28% from the previous election.